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Posted by Lorin
a resident of Sylvan Park
on Aug 18, 2007 at 6:32 am

Hmmm... I'm sure the geese find the golfers to be inconvenient "pests" as well. What do people expect when we keep incroaching on the little habitat that animals have left? If you eliminate one part of the food chain, another part (insects, etc.) will flourish, and people will complain about that. Golfing requires too much land for a sport that most Americans can't even afford to participate in. I think these golfers should be thankful that they are afforded so many courses that use huge lots of land, that so few are able to enjoy.

Posted by steve
a resident of Old Mountain View
on Aug 18, 2007 at 12:17 pm

The geese are here coinciding with us what are we supposed to do kill everything that is not human because it's an inconvenience to humans and what about the [word removed] that sued the city of Mountain View because there child was feeding the squirrles and ended up being scratched by the animal , so we better sue the city,they said they wanted to set up a trust fund for 200,000 dollars for there child because he can never look at a squirrel the same way again.. what is with people these days are we supposed to get rid of all animals on earth so we can build more houses and take over the earth ..WAKE UP PEOPLE THE ANIMALS ARE HERE TO COINCIDE WITH US !!!

Posted by Michelle
a resident of Shoreline West
on Aug 21, 2007 at 5:18 pm

Oh, poor wittle golfers. Are those big nasty Geese in your way -- trying to live their LIVES and interrupting your terribly important space-wasting GAME?

Hello? Life vs. game. Hmmm, this isn't really such a tough one people.

'Ya big whiners -- maybe a priority shift is in order. First -- can you really afford that golf game anyway? Come on be honest. Do you have any retirement money saved at all? Because at no point in my future do I want to be financially responsible for supporting people who suffocate baby geese with Mineral Oil. Second -- its a game vs. their lives. Think about it. Third -- for goodness sakes, is this the only thing you can think of to do with your valuable time and money? Play golf? I think not.

I second that! Don't take me wrong, I don't want the geese endangered or extinct, but that many living in a park isn't good for us OR them. They can grow accustomed to us,causing an unhealthy reliance, and could easily become more aggressive in their unnatural ease around humans.
The park is a place meant for humans, not a wildlife reserve (or it used to be). Last time I checked, it was the geese who came in, not vice-versa. Hey, animals are awesome. But just as it is possible for people to encroach on animals, so it is possible for them to encroach on us.
P.S. Golf is a healthier, more harmless pastime than many I could think of.

Posted by Dennis
a resident of Shoreline West
on Aug 27, 2007 at 7:21 pm

First, many other parks and golf courses around the Bay have done a much better job of controlling the geese. For example, Poplar Creek in San Mateo along the Bay aggressively uses firecrackers and/or flare guns to scare them away - almost none left on the course. So not sure why Shoreline has failed so miserably.

Second, the geese and coots are a health hazard not only to golfers but to others who use the park areas, including children. And they are a potential health hazard to the surrounding community. If either West Nile Virus or Bird Flu ever hit the area significantly, watch how quickly efforts get mobilized to get the geese out of the area. The geese plus the mosquitoes in the Shoreline Park area are a lurking health problem. Using some of the same logic from earlier messages, perhaps we should allow mosquitoes in the Bay Area to proliferate without control and just accept the health consequences.

As pointed out in earlier messages, humans created the environment that has invited these geese to stay at Shoreline all year. Historically, they were not indigenous year round. It’s not uncommon in society to discourage or control uninvited guests, whether people, animals or insects.

Posted by Bernie Brightman
a resident of North Whisman
on Sep 14, 2007 at 2:59 pm

Not sure that being adjacent to baylands is a good location for a golf course. Since golf has been accurately described as "a good walk wasted" anyway, perhaps we should find some method to discourage the golfers and have a very enjoyable park instead. Hey, it worked in New York. Ever hear of Central Park? Too bad few other cities have the courage to make an allocation of that level of drama and commitment.

Posted by Thomas
a resident of Old Mountain View
on Nov 30, 2007 at 10:03 pm

No one's addressed the real problem. This is a health issue. There are 4500 Coots at the Shoreline Park and Golf Course. Each Coot drops 0.25 lbs of feces per day. That's 410,625 lbs of feces per year and each and every year. If you go to the park to read a book and put your hands in the grass, chances are you have feces on them. Then you eat your apple. Same thing on the golf course when you ball rolls through the mess.

If all these Coot droppings were in the elementary school yard, there would be an outrage. Kids would not be allowed to play on the playground. I've seen 1000 Coots floating in Shoreline Park Lake. That's 95,000 lbs of feces a year in that lake. Want to windsurf in that lake?

Coots are not native to Shoreline Park, they only came after the Park was built. This year there's 4500 Coots. Next year maybe 6,000. What will the City do when there are 20,000 or when some senior golfer with poor immune system gets sick and sues the city.

THERE ARE AREAS OF SLIP AND SLIDE ON THE GOLF COURSE,AND IF YOU SHOULD FALL WHILE SWINGING YOR CLUB,GOOD LUCK COMING UP CLEAN.
A LOT OF EFFORT HAS BEEN PUT INTO PLACE,BUT THE PROBLEM REMAINS THE SAME.OF COURSE THE SAME APPLIES TO THE LAKES.IT IS NOT HEALTHY TO TAKE A DIP IN THE LAKE UNDER THESE CIRCUMSTANCES,AND IT IS PROBABLY
NOT HEALTHY TO PICNIC AS WELL.THERE COULD BE HEALTH PROBLEMS ARISING
WE DO NOT KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT NOW.TO AGITATE THESE BIRDS TO MOVE FROM ONE PLACE IN THE PARK TO ANOTHER WILL NOT DO.SO WHO HAS THE ANSWER ?